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Superman
Superman, birth name Kal-El and adopted name Clark Kent, is the premier superhero on Earth, an honorary member of the X-Men and one of the founding members of the Justice League, and current Station-Commander of the Sentrius Battlestation. History Early life As an infant Kal-El was sent to Earth by his parents, Jor-El and Lara, prior to the destruction of their home planet, Krypton. Kal-El's capsule landed near Smallville, Kansas, where he was found by Jonathan and Martha Kent. The Kents adopted the young Kryptonian, naming him "Clark". Clark began to discover his powers while growing up in Smallville, and had a difficult time dealing with the fact that he is not human. He befriended two significant people in his life; Lex Luthor, who was rescued from drowning in a lake by Clark; and Alison Blaire. He would also make friends with other individuals who also possessed powers and special abilities: Wally West, Victor Stone, Arthur Curry, and Oliver Queen. With Alison Blaire, these six friends would worked together in foiling mischief and referred to themselves as the "Six Musketeers". At one point he saved a young Emma Frost from a fire when her father was trying to buy the lands off the Smallville farmers, and they struck a friendship for a time, although their contact was broken after she left, when Winston chose to intercept and return his mail. In the wake of Jonathan's death, Clark found a pair of crystals in his spaceship, which suddenly awoke something inside him. Bidding his goodbyes to Martha, Clark set out to find his destiny, his journey eventually leading him to the North Pole, where the crystals he had brought created for him the Fortress of Solitude, where he began learning about his true origins. Joining the X-Men After four years of staying in the Fortress, Clark had trained in mastering his powers and learned every knowledge about Krypton, its civilization, and other alien races. He also became aware of the existence of mutants and other people with superpowers that appeared during his long seclusion and with the mutants using their own powers for good; inspired him to becoming Superman. Clark donned a blue costume bearing the "S" symbol of the House of El and a red cape modeled after the uniform of the Kryptonian Defense Force. In time, Clark's power signature was discovered by Professor Charles Xavier and was brought to the attention of the mutant team, the X-Men. At first the team had mistaken Clark for a powerful mutant, they were soon surprised when he revealed them of his alien origins. He explained to them of his intention of using his powers for good; however, the X-Men forewarned him that his goodwill actions would risk mutants' existence to the human public, who are not ready to accept that there are those being born among them with abilities that they do not have. Clark readily saw to their reasons and decide to discreetly help people without being seen. He was then offered to join the Xavier Institute and serve as an shining example of aspiring mutants and showing people to see that mutants are not a threat to them; in which Superman agreed. Shortly after his arrival in Bayville, New York, Clark had responded to many natural disasters and saving lives. Despite keeping his rescues under incognito, he was spotted while preventing a nuclear disaster and had his image photographed in newspapers. It was this incident that the news media and the public gave Clark's costumed persona the name "Superman". While living at the Institute, Superman's presence among the X-Men greatly helped in recruiting Nightcrawler, Shadowcat, Rogue, and Spyke into their roster. Aside from his heroic duties, under his alter ego, Clark attended Bayville University with a major on journalism, which subsequently led to his internship at the Daily Bugle. Superman would meet many individuals and groups whom he would come to consider staunch allies: the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, and Doctor Strange. While working with the X-Men, Superman came into conflict with the Brotherhood of Mutants, which was led by Magneto, who saw humanity would inevitably persecute mutants and see to wage war on humanity in ensuring mutantkind's survival. Superman would later personally confront Magneto and learned from him that he will have a major impact on Earth according to a prophecy foretold by Irene Adler, which regarded a passage from the prophecy that Superman was destined to unite mutantkind; but the Master of Magnetism misinterpreted the passage that Superman was meant to lead mutantkind over humanity. Superman adamantly rejected Magneto's beliefs. However, Superman was lured into a trap on Asteroid M and was exposed to Kryptonite. The X-Men were likewise captured and brought to Asteroid M, where Magneto plan on harnessing the Asteroid that amplified his powers to bringing a passing meteor shower to bombard Earth and wiping out humanity. Fortunately, Magneto's genocide was foiled when Avalanche, a member of the Brotherhood, was appalled in discovering his master's intentions from Superman, and helped in freeing the Man of Steel and the X-Men. Superman was able to destroy the meteors and saving the planet. Unknown to Superman, his actions actually fulfilled the first trial of Adler's prophecy. Further adventures Superman would later become an instructor of the New Mutants as a important figure in their lives. One of his students, Boom Boom, was almost expelled from the Xavier Institute for her disobedience in her training and was forced to work with her father in theft, but was recommended and inspired by Superman to reconsider staying at the Institute. Along with facing the Brotherhood of Mutants, new enemies faced the Man of Steel. Most of them were archenemies of his ally Spider-Man, such as the Kingpin. But the most dangerous was Doctor Doom, who was an ally of Magneto and vowed to make Superman to become ruler of mutantkind. The most persistent adversary that Superman encountered was Doom's adopted mutant daughter and sorceress, Siryn, who was determined to become his wife and rule the world alongside him. Aside from costumed enemies, Superman battled the mutant-hate organization the Friends of Humanity led by Graydon Creed. Even as his roster of enemies swelled, Superman met other emerging heroes that became his powerful allies: Batman, Green Lantern John Stewart, and Hawkgirl. He also reunited with his old friends from Smallville, who had also become costumed heroes: Flash, Aquaman, Green Arrow, and Cyborg. Chiefly among them was Lex Luthor, who became a CEO magnate of LexCorp, and Alison Blaire, who revealed to be a mutant known as Dazzler and enrolled to the Xavier Institute. In time, Superman discovered that he is not the last Kryptonian as he found his pet Kryptonian dog Krypto, and later found Dazzler to be part-Kryptonian, who then re-dubbed herself as Power Girl. Ultimately, Superman's conflict with his foremost enemies culminated with mutantkind exposed to the public as part of Magneto's and Doom's another failed attempt to curve his "destiny" to lead mutantkind. This event dragged him and several heroes of both new and old with stopping the rogue Krypontian A.I. Brainiac from destroying Earth. Realizing that coexistence between humanity and mutantkind and fighting against global threats needed much greater assistance, Superman joined forces alongside Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Flash, Hawkgirl, Aquaman, and Martian Manhunter to form the Justice League. With the mutants revealed to the public, Superman and the Justice League would take on a more active role in keeping the world safe, at the same time having to deal with other threats within and outside Earth, including invasion from other alien races, such as the Chitauri, and terrorist acts from the Friends of Humanity. Superman would eventually travel to the Xerius Galaxy, where he would rescue his cousin Kara Zor-El from the dying planet Argo. Although his heroic career continued to improve, such as their swift defeat of The Pride and the Gribborim, Kal's personal life began to show cracks when Alison learned that she had actually been genetically engineered by her mother, in reality an agent of HYDRA, to ensure that she manifested a perfect combination of mutant and Kryptonian DNA to maximize her power potential. Shaken at this revelation, Alison departed to research her history, but her absence caused Kal to start to doubt himself due to the telepathic and empathic link they had unknowingly formed, as well as such incidents as Superman having to let vampire foe Deacon Frost die despite his rule against killing when there was literally nothing he could do to save Frost, or the discovery of Lex Luthor's role in a coup of Wakanda that ended with Lex being shot in the head and left in a potentially fatal coma. Fortunately, Alison returned in time to save Kal from a trap set by Shinobi Shaw, and the two rekindled their relationship. Superman would later meet the man who had once been his father's closest friend and his godfather, after Cadmus's scientist attempted to study a Phantom Zone Cell that had landed on Earth, inadvertedly releasing the captive General Zod and causing several zone singulartities to open up around Earth. Zod would help in closing them fighting the Phantom Zone escapees, and Superman would remain looking up to him, despite showing signs of mental instability. When the Shi'ar, Skrull and Kree empires came together to Earth to invade in order to adquire the Kryptonian technology, Superman and Zod would travel to retrieve the ultimate weapon to defeat them, the Kryptonian battlestation Sentrius. Zod appointed Superman as Station-Commander, and they returned in the nick of time to defeat the invaders and save the Earth once again. However, after the triple invasion had been averted, General Zod took his chance to conquer Earth after a failed attack on Sentrius gave him the opening to retalliate. With his own personal training and military expertise, he easily dominated any fight against Earth's other superhumans, regardless of their alliances with their traditional enemies, and managed to bring Fort Rozz to Earth to use as his personal headquarters. However, the heroes were able to convince Sentrius to reject Zod's commands when Brainiac 5 revealed Zod's role in the war crimes against the Shi'ar and destroying Fort Rozz. The Justice League and the X-Men were able to defeat Zod by luring him into a stadium surrounded by a force field that converted the sunlight hitting the stadium into red sunlight; fighting so many heroes at once, Zod rapidly depleted his solar batteries. With a Kryptonite missile heading for the stadium, Superman gave Zod a choice: either to flee back into a Phantom Zone portal or remain and be destroyed. His faith in Krypton crushed, Superman addressed the U.N. assuming full responsibility for not catching on Zod's true intentions from the beginning, even offering to surrender command of Sentrius to them. However, seeing that some people might take advantage of this, T'Challa adressed the U.N. by saying that Superman was the one who had suffered the most by Zod's betrayal. His efforts helped in keeping Sentrius under Superman's command, and reasurring him that, even though there were people who distrusted him, there were also those who still had faith in him. Facing his destiny In the aftermath of Zod's betrayal, despite Superman's best efforts there was a growing sentiment of mistrust amongst politicians and the public. Superman was confronted by Magneto, who at that point had seemingly gone past his obsession to make him ruler of mutantkind, after researching about the ancient mutant known as En Sabah Nur , aka Apocalypse, whom Magneto presumed is the "Darkness" Superman is destined to face according to the prophecy. After the kidnapping of Mystique, they tracked his followers to the Great Sphinx in Egypt, where they failed to prevent their release, and were forced to make a hasty retreat. Magneto sacrificed himself to allow them to escape, despite Superman's efforts to save him, as he knew he would be the world's only hope against Nur. With Nur laying low as he tried to reform his army to conquer the world, Superman and his allies had no choice but to remain on alert until he made his move, at the same time having to face other threats, such as the Dheronians, who had come to Earth to exact revenge against the remaining Kryptonians (using the infatuation of Almeracian Queen Maxima to their advantage), and the resurfacing of Project Cadmus, the Friends of Humanity and HYDRA. Unknown to him, an even bigger threat was lurking outside of Earth: the ruler of planet Apokolips, Darkseid, took his chance to kidnap Superman and attempted to torture out of him the secrets about the Anti-Life Equation, known to the Kryptonians as the "Computation of Rao". Superman managed to survive thanks to the help of his newfound allies Scott Free and Barda, until his allies rescued him. The experience, however, inflicted severe trauma on him, forcing him to take a few weeks off until he recovered physically and psychologically. During this time, he began training with Batman in order to make himself less reliant on his powers, and develop better combat skills in case he might need them in the future. Once back on duty, Superman and his allies had to fight a large uprising of mutants who had been lured (some of them brainwashed) into joining Apocalypse's army. During this time, he encountered the ancient mage Myrrden Emrys, (known in history as Merlin) who was one of the mages who defeated Apocalypse in the ancient times. Knowing he had little time left, Merlin provided Superman and his allies with all the resources and knowledge he had so they would stand a chance to combat Nur. With his dying breath, he told them to search for another of his mage allies, his brother Shazam. Later on, Superman came into conflict with a new member of the Suicide Squad, the Sentry, who had similar powers to him but seemingly less control over them, as well as the time-traveling "hero-for-hire" Booster Gold who had less than noble motives. Nevertheless, after he assisted in the rescue of Jaime Reyes Superman offered him a chance to be a mentor to the kid and make up for his mistakes working as a real hero. Powers and abilities Superman possesses the powers of vast superhuman strength and speed, near-invulnerability, flight, super breath, heat vision, x-ray vision, telescopic/microscopic vision, super hearing, and a computer-like mind. He also possesses an enhanced healing factor, which enables him to quickly recover from wounds with little to no visible aftermath. His powers are derived from the yellow sun of Earth. Superman's body drawing on the sun's energy forms a internal 'energy transfer system' within his body that enables him to go without eating, sleeping or breathing; and furthermore makes him immune to the most diseases and poisons. This also allows him to be immune to X-Gene powers possessed by mutants, such as telepathy, due to the high mental "frequency" inside his head. * Kryptonian Physiology: As a Kryptonian, Superman possesses abilities that far surpass the capabilities of humans. While on a planet with a yellow sun and an atmosphere less harsher than his home planet of Krypton's, and very similar to Earth, Superman is granted many abilities and powers that surpass the capabilities of both humans and superhumans alike, making him the Justice League's most powerful member. Overall, Superman is an incredibly powerful being, and is one of the most powerful beings in the universe. Equipment In the early days of his career, Superman very rarely used any additional equipment, except for his personal belt-computer. It's linked to the Fortress of Solitude , to alert him from any emergencies and including several advanced functions. Later it was linked to the Watchtower, and it's most often used as a personal communicator to contact his teammates and allies from any location. After his old uniform was destroyed in Apokolips, Superman created a new one, equipping it with aditional weaponry, including a Remote Shield Generator in his chest emblem and gloves with retractable Plasma Sabers in the back, both powered by his own solar metabolism, or an internal reserve solar battery. Weaknesses Superman's powers are derived from Earth's yellow sun. Forced under a red sun akin to that of his homeworld of Krypton, Superman rapidly loses his powers, reverting to the stature of a normal human. Artificially-created red sun radiation has the same effect although depending on the amount, it can do anything from either completely depriving Superman of his powers or just weakening him. Aside from red sun radiation, Superman's main weakness is Kryptonite, radioactive shards of his destroyed home planet. Exposure to Kryptonite would rob Superman of his power and cause him great pain, and prolonged exposure could kill him. Superman's only other known weakness is magic. His invulnerability offers no protection against most forms of sorcery; as a result, spells cast on Superman affect him the same as they would anyone else. However, Superman can sometimes resist magic that depends on his willpower. Personality In many ways, Superman is the ideal hero: compassionate, empathetic, charismatic, selfless, and loyal. Despite his seemingly limitless power, he discourages others from worshiping him, and is not interested in wielding political power, a fact that baffles many of his enemies. Though confident in his abilities, he is not arrogant and knows and acknowledges that he has weaknesses. Conversely, however, he tries to hold back his powers as much as possible, as he's aware of the damage he could cause with them should he cut loose. Despite his self-control, there had been times when he's gone into fits of rage (albeit for justified reasons), and he's shown to be capable of being very brutal and violent against his enemies when pushed over the edge, although he still manages to keep himself under control to avoid crossing the line. Relationships Family Superman was raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent, a couple of farmers from Smallville who, unable to conceive a child of their own, decided to take him in when he (literally) fell from the sky upon them, giving him his Earth name, Clark Kent. Jonathan and Martha raised him with a lot of love and care, despite the difficulties they faced due to his superpowers. They also instilled a strong sense of moral and justice in him from a very early age, which in his adult years would inspire him to use his powers for the benefit of mankind. He felt really devastated when his adoptive father died of a heart attack, blaming himself for not being there to help him, although he would come to terms with this loss when he understood what he meant with his final words. Superman never got to meet his biological family, he only came to know of them thanks to the messages Jor-El had left for him in his Fortress of Solitude. Jor-El had high hopes for his son to carry on the legacy of Krypton, and inspire the Earthlings to reach the greatness the Kryptonian race once had. This, coupled with the teachings from his adoptive parents, would become Superman's main driving force in life. Superman shares a strong bond with his cousin-in-law, Kara Zor-El, despite not being related by blood, he made a huge effort to rescue her from Argo. Kara, in turn decided to follow her cousin's footsteps and use her powers for good, taking on the name Supergirl. The X-Men Superman first met the X-Men when Professor Charles Xavier, along with Logan, Storm, Cyclops and Jean Grey discovered him, at first thinking he was a powerful mutant. Even though he explained that he was actually an alien, seeing that he shared the similar goal of using his abilities for good, Professor Xavier still invited him to join them, which he accepted. From then on, he came to consider the X-Men as a family, as he could be himself around them without having to hide, and inspired many others to join the X-Men with his own example. The Justice League The Justice League was formed in the aftermath of the revelation of mutants to the public. Superman has a close relationship with all of its members, even those he hadn't met previously to the formation of the league. Other Heroes Superman has a formed friendships with many other heroes on Earth. He admitted to Captain America and the Avengers that he was inspired by him to become a hero since his childhood. He has also worked on many occasions with the Fantastic Four. In his time in New York, he became an occasional partner of Spider-Man, and even befriended him in his secret identity as Peter Parker, becoming work colleagues in the Daily Bugle for a time. There are others whom Superman doesn't hold in too high regards due to their questionable motivations and methods, such as Daredevil, Blade and The Punisher. Despite this, he would occasionally ally with them if the situation calls for it. Enemies Superman has made out a large amount of enemies, many of which seem to fear and/or resent him for the great power he has and how he chooses to wield it. Notably, the likes of Magneto, Doctor Doom and Sebastian Shaw have all expressed interest in trying (with no success) to get him to join their causes. The ancient mutant Apocalypse, acknowledges that Superman has a power that can match his own, and feels disturbed by the fact he uses it to help the "weaklings". Superman has also attracted the wrath of alien races who hold grudges against the Kryptonian people, such as the Chitauri, Kree and Skrulls, as well as the Dheronians. Many a time these races have attacked him in an attempt to get revenge or to seize the advanced technology he has. The worst of them is the supreme ruler of Apokolips, Darkseid, who is presumed to be Superman's greatest foe in the near future. Background information Superman's origin story in The Last Son ''borrows elements from many sources, notably the DCAU and ''Smallville Category:Characters Category:X-Men members Category:Justice League members Category:Kryptonians Category:Heroes Category:Men Category:Article stubs Category:Six Musketeers members